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R. H. NORTON AND W. C. FORK.

BOX STRAP SEALING IMPLEMENT. APPLICATION FILED JAN. 6, 1919.

1,322,723, Patented Nov. 25, 1919.

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BALPH H. NORTON AND WILLIAM C. FORK, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNORS 'IO ACME STEEL GOODS COMPANY, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, A CORPORATION OF ILLINOIS.

BOX-STRAP-SEALING- IMPLEMENT.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed January 6, 1919. Serial No. 269,942.

Toall whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, RALPH H. NORTON and WILLIAM C. FORK, citizens of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Box-Strap-Sealing Implements, of which the following is a specification.

Our invention relates to a hand implement for applying a boX strap seal of the kind disclosed in the. Norton Patent 1,260,016 dated March 19, 1918. The ob ect is to provide an implement of simple construction which can be readily and eflectively manipulated to completely and umformly create such a seal as that of said patent, a characteristic feature of which is the shearing of the marginal portion of the sleeve and the inclosed over-lapped strap ends. so that by reason of the incidental deflection of cut or sheared edges, the parts constituting the seal are definitely and positively interlocked against pulling apart.

In the drawings which accompany and form part of this specification, Figure 1 represents the complete instrument in side elevation; Fig. 2 represents the same in longitudinal vertical section; Fig. 3 is a front elevation; Figs. 4 and 5 are front and bottom views of one of the dies; Fig. 6 is a plan view of the other die, or it may be considered as a horizontal section taken substantially on the line 6-6 of Fig. 2; Fig. .7 shows the completed seal in top lan view; Fig. 8 is a broken perspective of the same.

The reference numeral 2 designates a main body portion or base of the implement, which is of bifurcated form for the accommodation of the movable die and also for the mounting of an operating lever 3. The base 2 has a rearwardly extending leg 2*, somewhat arched, and terminating in a foot 2*. The stationary one of the dies is, in its general form, a fiat plate 4 of hardened metal which is fastened to the under-side of the main body portion 2. This is conveniently done by the use of screws 5 and the die-formation, presently to be described, aids in securely positioning the plate. The latter protrudes slightly beyond'the front face of the body 2 and is beveled as shown for the purpose of facilitating its insertion under the over-lapped strap ends as they over-lie the surface. of the box being strapped. (It will be understood that an implement such as that disclosed in the Norton and MacKenzie Patent 1,242,026 is employed to stretch the strap around the box and hold the ends while the sealing is in progress, the said implement being so constructed as to provide ample space to work the sealing implement.) The aforesaid die plate 4 is of reduced thickness in general at its forward portion so that a mouth 6 will be formed between it and the under-side of the body 2, the over-lapped strap ends and the surrounding sleeve being received in that mouth and gaged'in lateral position by coming up against its vertical shoulder at the rear. There is an up-standing rib 7 formed centrally of the die plate 4 and extending from front to rear thereof with recesses 8 on opposite sides having sloping bottoms. The formation is well illustrated in Figs. 3 and 6, and it will be observed that the top face of the plate is slightly depressed adjacent the recesses and for a distance toward the opposite side of the plate, the latter having marginal portions 9 flush with the rib. The rib and recess formation is preferably continued all the way through to the rear of the plate, and the underside of the body 2 complementally formed, merely for the purpose of a mortise-and-tenon fit which will insure the correct positioning of the die-plate and a rigid uniting of it with the body portion 2.

When the overlapped strap ends and the surrounding sleeve occupy the mouth 6, the sleeve will be centrally positioned as indicated by dotted lines in Fig. 6, so that its middle transverse portion will rest upon the rib 7, while the strap ends rest, respectively, upon the marginal portions 9 of the dieplate 4.

The movable die is in the form of a block 10 which fits between the side walls of the bifurcated portion of the body 2 and against a back wall thereof, and this block is confined by a plate 11 screwed against the front of the bod in a recessed portion thereof. From the bottom face of this block there protrude a series of four cutting and bending projections 10*. They are integral with,

Patented Nov. 25, 1919.

" spective'of this, they are tetrahedrons. Each of them has two side faces at right angles to the bottom face of the block and at right angles to each other, and a third obllque face. They are located with straight faces confronting each other and spaced apart to correspond with the lateral dimens ons of the rib 7 of the die plate 4:. Cons1der1ng these projections as constituted of two pairs on opposite sides of this space, each such pair presents flaring jaws with cutting edges created by the oblique faces and ada ted when passing down alongside the rib to shear the metal of the sleeve 0 and the en'- veloped strap ends A and B with the effect illustrated by Figs. 7 and 8, which substantially duplicate Figs. 1 and 5 of said Norton patent. As this shearing of the marginal portions of the sleeve and strap ends takes place, the oblique or beveled faces of the die projections operate to deflect the metal on opposite sides of the central transverse area which overlies and rests upon the die rib 7.

The upper portion !of the block 10 is bifurcated to accommodate an antifriction roller 12 journaled upon a stud which is suitably secured in the arms of the block.

. The operating lever 3 has a reduced portion which fits between the arms of thebody 2 and is pivoted upon a stud 13 carrled by said arms. This reduced portion of the lever is of bifurcated form and contains a piece of hardened metal 14. The die block 10 is held up by a stifi spring 15, fastened at one end to a lug of the leg 2 by a screw 17 and entering a hole 1O" of the die block at its free end, as clearly shown in Fig. 2. The roller 12 is in alinement with the metal piece 14 and the latter has in the forward portion of its under edge, a notch or socket 1 1 in which said roller seats, the engagement being enforced by said spring 15. This condition is illustrated in Fig. 2 and it will be seen that the die block 10 is so far retracted in its guide-ways that the cutting projections are'almost entirely withdrawn from the mouth 6, leaving the latter free-to re- .ceive the seal assemblage. -The engagement of the roller with the said notch or socket furthermore constrains the operating lever 3 to occupy its upright or idle position. It may be noted in this connection that the piece 14 projects downward a sufficient extent in fr nt of the roller to prevent the throwing f the lever forwardly beyond this idle position, to any appreciable extent.

The first effect of forcibly swinging the lever 3 rearward is to unseat the roller 12 from the notch or socket 1 1 and force. the

die-block 10 downward, putting the cutting projections in position to act upon the metal of the seal. In the further rearward and downward swinging of the lever the' -rear portion of the edge of the piece 14 acts with a camming effect upon the roller 12 to force the block 10 farther down and cause the shearing and bending as before described.

.- The dimensions of the die-jaws are such, in relation to the dimensions of the assembled seal arts, that the initial downward thrust of t e die blbck 10 (caused by the unimity to the seal parts. It is then the relatively gradual descent of the block (caused by the camming action of the rearward edge of-the piece 14 upon the roller 12) which causes the dies to shear the metal and deflect it, under conditions manifestly insuring effective action in this regard. During this operation the central transverse portion of the seal sleeve is firmly supported by the die-rib 7 so that its flatness is preserved,

and the seal parts beyond the recesses 8 rest over the top surfaces of the plate 4:, so that the seal will emerge in the shape shown in said Norton patent, and in Figs. 7 and 8 hereof. I I

We claim:

1. An implement of the character described comprising a base having a die member with a recessed portion and immediately adjacent flat surfaces; an overhanging head attached to the base,space being provided for the lateral ingress and egress of assembled strap-ends and sleeve; a die member movable across said space and having cutting side-edges in shearing relationship to edges of the other die member at the lat ters recessed portion; and means for applying powerfte'force the one die member upon the assembled strap ends and sleeve laid crosswise over the recessed portion and flat .surfaces of the other die member whereby incisions are. made through the metal of the sleeve and strap-ends and limited portions thereof to one side of the in; cisions are deflected into the recessed portion of the one die member while portions to the other side are sustained by the flat surfaces formed is preserved throughout.

2 An implement of the character described compnsmga base having a die member with a central ;rib and recesses on oppo site, sides thereof and flat surfaces adjacent said recesses; an overhanging head attached to the basefispace being provided for the lateral ingress and egress of assembled strap-ends and sleeve; a diemember movable across said space and having cutting edges spaced apart to straddle said rib in shearing relationship to the edges thereof; and means, for applying power to force the one die member upon the assembled strapends and sleeve laid crosswise over the rib andrecesses and flat surfaces of the other die member whereby incisions are made through the metal of the said assembly and limited portions thereof to one side of the incisions are deflected into the recesses While the middle transverse area overlying the rib is kept flat as are likewise those areas overlying the aforesaid flat surfaces adjacent 10 the recesses, so that, except for the limited deflected portions, the flatness of the seal thus formed is preserved throughout.

RALPH H. NORTON. WILLIAM G. FORK. 

